Think the Seahawks are concerned about their offensive line? They are. But the Falcons have just as much reason to be worried about protecting their quarterback on Sunday.

Atlanta hasn’t done much to keep Matt Ryan upright so far this season, allowing 13 sacks in three games. That’s alarming for a team that surrendered only 23 sacks all of last year.

Add to that the fact that Seattle’s defensive front has been the strength of its team this season – the Seahawks sacked Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb three times and knocked him down several more – and this could be an area the Seahawks could exploit on Sunday.

“We’ve got to be able to play coverage too, but when the time is right and we feel good about the situations we’re going to try and get after him any way we can,” defensive coordinator Gus Bradley said. “So we’ve got guys we feel like are good blitzers, and we’re going to blitz them.”

A key for the Seahawks will be getting another quality game out of defensive end Chris Clemons, who returned to form last week after struggling to recover from offseason ankle surgery. Clemons had a sack and seven tackles against the Cardinals, and was a disruptive force in both the running game and the passing game for the first time this season.

In other words, he looked more like he did last year, when he led the team with 11 sacks.

“It’ll be interesting to see if he’s there 100 percent right now, but I know he’s a lot closer than he was a couple weeks ago,” Bradley said. “So it was great seeing him coming off on third down situations. That just picks up the whole tempo. The defensive backs were talking about it on the sideline, how some things were coming on a little bit quicker, they feel it too.”

2. Offensive tempo

The Seahawks need to play faster if they want to beat the Falcons.

Fact is, the only time Seattle’s offense has looked even somewhat dangerous was when they operated out of the no-huddle in the second half of Sunday’s win over Arizona.

Quarterback Tarvaris Jackson says he doesn’t mind it. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said it’s likely the Seahawks will use more of it.

That’s a good idea. If the Seahawks can play faster on offense, they can keep the Falcons from settling in on defense and getting their pass rush going. That’s going to be key for the Seahawks, who have allowed 14 sacks this season and are still dealing with some lack of continuity on the offensive line.

“You can’t really get a beat on exactly what they’re doing on every play,” Jackson said of Atlanta’s defense. “They try to mix it up. They get after the quarterback. They bring a lot of blitzes so you’ve got to be prepared for it. But they also mix it up sometimes with coverages so you’ve got to basically be prepared for both.”

3. No Kam Chancellor

Technically, the Seahawks starting strong safety is listed as doubtful. But it seems highly unlikely that Chancellor will play Sunday, considering the fact that he didn’t practice all week and coach Pete Carroll said Friday the team is preparing to start Atari Bigby in Chancellor’s spot.

It’s times like these that really make the Bigby signing look like a good idea – and as Carroll pointed out, it’s going to be a busy day for the veteran safety. Bigby also plays on Seattle’s special teams, so he’s going to be on the field quite a bit.

It’s an opportunity Bigby is looking forward to. He used to be a starter for the Green Bay Packers before injuries got in the way.

“I feel real good,” Bigby said. “Ecstatic. I’m excited to see what I do in my debut.”

He’ll have his hands full, as will the rest of the Seahawks secondary. Everyone knows about Falcons receiver Roddy White, though he’s listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report with a thigh injury. And everyone also knows how dangerous tight end Tony Gonzalez still is after all these years.

Throw into the mix Julio Jones, the sixth overall selection in this year’s draft, and the Falcons have quite a few weapons for Ryan to throw the ball to.

“They’re big, physical possession receivers. We know that. We’ve seen those guys throughout the years. They also have a good running game and a good tight end in Gonzalez.”

4. You there, Mike?

Mike Williams has kept a pretty good spirit about not being thrown the ball much in the Seahawks’ first three games. As has been well-documented, he was targeted only once in Sunday’s game, and has been thrown to just nine times the whole year.

But there’s just no way the Seahawks can keep that up if their passing attack is going to be truly effective. Sure, Sidney Rice is good. Maybe even great. And there’s nothing wrong with one guy catching eight balls for 109 yards, as Rice did against the Cardinals.

There is plenty wrong, however, with your go-to target from one year ago (Williams) seeing fewer passes than your second-string tailback (Justin Forsett). That’s been the reality for the Seahawks so far this year.

Williams maintains that as long as the team wins, he doesn’t care what his numbers look like. And he’s right – that’s the outlook he should have, and kudos to him for keeping a level head.

That’s the problem, though – the Seahawks WON’T continue winning if Williams isn’t catching any passes. It’s going to be way too easy for opposing defenses to lock onto Rice on the right side or Doug Baldwin in the slot, knowing that Jackson hasn’t made much of an effort to look to Williams’ side of the field.

To Jackson’s credit, he’s made a point of saying he wants to throw to Williams more. So look for the Seahawks to run some pass plays designed to get Williams more involved.

5. Is Matt Bryant still reeling?

How would you feel if someone stole your golf clubs from your house, then traded them on the open market in exchange for 80 Ecstasy pills?

Probably not real well. Maybe so not-well that you miss a couple of kicks and cost your team a football game?

OK, so that’s pushing it. Mainly, we just wanted to point out that Falcons kicker Matt Bryant had his sticks stolen earlier this week — check out the story from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution — and remains unhappy that his rather expensive putter has still not been returned.

The guy who stole the clubs was delivering Chinese food to Bryant’s house. Then he traded the clubs for some happy pills before being arrested.

Honestly, there’s nothing to watch for here. It is a joke. But the way this season has gone so far for the Seahawks – and the way it’s expected to play out the rest of the way – what’s wrong with a little laughter every now and then?